Most people on the University of Iowa campus who grew up in the ’90s remember the name Uncle Joey and connect it to expert Bullwinkle impressions, fun-loving pranks, and a plethora of Hawaiian shirts.
The man behind the character of Joey Gladstone, Dave Coulier, from the ’90s family sitcom "Full House," will bring his comedic skill to the UI this weekend and give a performance that will likely make the audience nostalgic.
"I’m really excited to come to the university because I know a lot of college students have grown up watching ‘Full House,’ so it’s kind of a cool bonding experience for me as well," Coulier said.
He will perform a comedy show at 10 p.m. Friday in the IMU Main Lounge as part of the Campus Activities Board comedy series. Admission is $5.
The comedian said his standup shows are friendly to any kind of audience and described his humor as funny without the "F-bomb" aftertaste.
"I’ve been doing this for a really long time, and to me, a laugh is a laugh," he said. "You don’t always have to have [bad] language in it."
Since his acting days on "Full House" from 1987 to 1995, Coulier has continued his comedy career with standup acts as well as a new web series called "Can’t Get Arrested."
The web series is composed of five episodes that Coulier co-created, coproduced, and cowrote with Jordan Rozansky and others. He also starred in the episodes with a small cast, including some familiar faces from his "Full House" days, Jodie Sweetin and Candace Cameron Bure.
"We see each other quite a bit," Coulier said. "We haven’t worked together since out ‘Full House’ days. I wanted to create something that could be fun and different from ‘Full House.’ "
The team created the five-episode series in just four days during October.
"It ramped up very quickly, and I think based on that, I’m pretty proud of what the final product is," Coulier said.
The comedian described the humor of the show as a combination of a "Curb Your Enthusiasm" mixed with "Paparazzi" style.
Campus Activities Board comedy director Kyle Allen said this fall’s comedy series was one of the board’s most popular events of the semester, and the members hope for similar success in the spring.
Some of the acts that proceeded Coulier in the series were Keenan Thompson, Josh Blue, and Heather McDonald.
"I think we’ve had a good range of different comedians who have come," Allen said. "Each of them bring kind of a different style."
Board members said Coulier is a fitting choice to finish off the series.
"I think this show is the perfect way to finish off the semester, said board President Kathleen Kuhar. " ‘Full House’ is our childhood, it’s the ’90s for us, and everyone loved Uncle Joey and his Bullwinkle impressions."